Midfield superiority helps see St. James’ through

St James’s 0-11

Caherlistrane 0-9

Francis Farragher at Tuam Stadium

Town and country clashed at Tuam Stadium on Saturday evening in the second round of the senior football championship and when the dust settled, it was the men from the fringe of the city who showed the greater edge for battle in a competitive, if slightly lacklustre, encounter.

The city side laid the foundation for this victory with a powerful first half midfield display during which Paul Conroy and Aaron Connolly won most of the key possession battles – indeed, if the St James’ attack had been a tad more economical, Caherlistrane’s goose could have been well cooked by half-time.

Caherlistrane’s cause wasn’t helped either by the early second half dismissal of midfielder Brendan Murphy for a second yellow card in the 38th minute – it was a moment of petulance rather than malice that led to his demise when he took umbrage at being penalised after taking a great catch under his own crossbar.

Ironically, but maybe not surprisingly, in the great tradition of teams down to 14 men, Caherlistrane responded to the setback with their most spirited period of play, levelling the encounter going into the last quarter, before an old failing in attack cost them dearly in the closing minutes.

Viewed from the starting blocks, it was like a contest between Usain Bolt and a long distance runner, with Conroy and Connolly lording midfield for the winners as they raced into a 0-4 to 0-1 lead by the 17th minute thanks to points from Paul Conroy (free), Alan O’Donnell, David O’Connell and Seamie Rabbitte.

During most of that first half, the Caherlistrane forwards were restricted to a limited supply of ball with two Cormac Bane points their only return from the first 20 minutes, although they did finish with a small flourish thanks to an Eric Monahan free, an Oisin O’Brien point from play and a late Bane free.

At the other end, three Paul Conroy frees helped edge St James’ into a 0-7 to 0-5 interval lead but it was a slack enough advantage, given the clear edge in possession they had enjoyed – conservatively they should have reached double figures in their first half points total.

Caherlistrane corner forward Ronan Conneely delivered one of the scores of the match just after the break, but eight minutes into the half Brendan Murphy’s second yellow seemed a real knock-out blow for the North Galway side.

For more, read this week’s Galway City Tribune